New Vision Academy to close this week, forcing more than 150 students to find new schools

The Nashville charter school New Vision Academy is under investigation by the school district for financial irregularities and failing to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Michael Schwab, The Tennessean

The New Vision Academy charter school is closing its doors following a year of local, state and federal investigations and the recent revelation that its facility violates fire code.

Students' last day will be Thursday and the last day for staff will be Friday, according to a letter from Metro Nashville Public Schools officials to the school board.

The school was told by the district last week the south Nashville church building it uses was housing too many students than the fire code allowed. At least 64 students were going to be forced out, but instead the school will close down, meaning 158 students will need to begin attending classes elsewhere by March 18.

Among the violations, the school had been cramming 18 to 20 students into classrooms that are only allowed to hold eight to 10 students.

New Vision was already under state and federal investigation for financial irregularities and complaints from teachers and at least one parent for failing to comply with federal laws regarding English-learning students and students with learning disabilities.

Charter schools are funded by taxpayers but operate independently, picking their own curriculum and managing their own budgets.

Because of the abrupt closing, the district plans to meet with parents this week, MNPS Executive Director of Charter Schools Dennis Queen said in a letter to the school board on Wednesday.

"Metro Nashville Public Schools will be conducting a parent meeting this week to discuss this recent decision and provide enrollment information and options for the children affected," Queen said. "The week of March 11-15 will be utilized for enrollment of children in their selected schools and children will begin their new assignments on March 18, 2019."

Queen said that about 15 New Vision staffers, including nine teachers, will lose their jobs. However, the district's human resources department will work to arrange interviews for vacant positions at other schools.

Queen said that beginning Friday his staff will work to retrieve property purchased with federal funds and district property in addition to student educational records.

Whistleblowers' report

The Tennessean revealed in May 2018 that a group of teachers sent a whistleblowers' report to school board member Amy Frogge complaining of a variety of problems at New Vision.

The teachers were fired the day the story published and later found new jobs at other schools.

The teachers said the school was not providing specialized classroom time for English-learning students or students with learning disabilities.

Nashville school board member Will Pinkston, a vocal critic of charter schools, said he was especially concerned with New Vision's closing since the school had been held up in school reform circles as a model school.

New Vision is located in Pinkston's south Nashville district.

“The collapse of New Vision is unfortunate for the families involved, but it ought to be a wake-up call to state officials about what’s really going on with charter schools," Pinkston said. "If not for whistleblowers and pressure by school board members, we would’ve never known what was happening at this school because there’s zero accountability or visibility into how charters operate.

"At the same time, we’ve had everyone from the state Department of Education to the State Collaborative on Reforming Education telling us that New Vision is a great school based on data that was either flawed or manipulated. This episode calls into question not just the charter movement, but the state’s approach for rating schools.”

SCORE gave New Vision a $10,000 prize in October 2015 for student gains based in part upon a weighted criteria that took into account three years of performance data from the Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program and the Tennessee Value-Added Assessment System, the group announced at the time.

Vanessa Ross, who removed two of her children from New Vision last week, told The Tennessean she still has not received education records relating to her son who has a learning disability.

Another financial concern raised in the whistleblower report was the salary of New Vision Academy’s executive director Tim Malone, who made $312,971 in the fiscal year ending June 30, 2017, according to the organization’s most recent public tax documents. His wife, LaKesha Malone New Vision’s second highest ranking executive. She earned $250,000 during that same period, documents showed.

The teachers' whistleblower report expressed doubt that funds earmarked for classroom supplies and transportation were being spent correctly, and the district sent their complaint to the state comptroller to be investigated.

In December, a spokesperson with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Inspector General confirmed the federal investigation but did not elaborate on its focus. The inspector general typically examines issues of fraud, waste and financial abuse.

An attorney for New Vision confirmed the school is closing but did not immediately offer further comment.